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PIB’S BULLETIN ON COVID-19 
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- Nationwide Cumulative Vaccination Coverage exceeds 19 Crore
- India Conducts Highest ever 20.61 Lakh Tests in the last 24 hours; Sets Another New Record
- Daily Positivity Rate Declines to 12.59%
- PM interacts with doctors and officials of Varanasi
- Countrywide “AYUSH COVID -19 Counselling Helpline” is now operational
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PRESS INFORMATION BUREAU
MINISTRY OF INFORMATION AND BROADCASTING
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
Nationwide Cumulative Vaccination Coverage exceeds 19 Crore
- India Conducts Highest ever 20.61 Lakh Tests in the last 24 hours; Sets Another New Record
- Daily Positivity Rate Declines to 12.59%
- Daily Recoveries Outnumber Daily New Cases for 8th Consecutive Day
- Less than 3 Lakh daily New Cases for five successive day
For Details: https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1720526
PM interacts with doctors and officials of Varanasi
Gives a new mantra in COVID management : ‘Jahan Bimar Wahan Upchar'
Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi interacted with doctors and officials of Varanasi today through video conference.
During the interaction, the doctors and officials of Varanasi thanked the Prime Minister for his continuous and proactive leadership that helped in ramping up health infrastructure and ensured adequate supply of necessary medications and critical equipment like ventilators and oxygen concentrators. The Prime Minister was informed about the efforts undertaken in the last one month to contain the spread of Covid, vaccination status, and the ongoing steps and plans to prepare the district for future challenges. The doctors also informed the Prime Minister that they have been vigilant about the threat of Mucormycosis and have already taken steps and created facilities for the management of the disease.
The Prime Minister underscored the importance of continuous training of the manpower fighting Covid and advised the officials and doctors to conduct training sessions and webinars, especially for the paramedical staff and doctors serving in the rural areas. He also asked the officials to work towards bringing down vaccine wastage in the district.
For details: https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1720567
Government of India proactively makes all round efforts to ramp up supply and availability of Amphotericin-B anti-fungal drug for treatment of Black Fungus disease
Five Additional Manufactures Given License to Manufacture within the Country; Production by Existing Five Manufacturers being Substantially Ramped Up
Union Ministry of Health along with Dept. of Pharmaceuticals and Ministry of External Affairs  are making proactive efforts for significantly ramping up domestic production of Amphotericin-B drug. The Union Government has also made effective efforts in supplementing the domestic availability through securing supply from global manufacturers.
For details: https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1720563
In the backdrop of reports of Black Fungus from States, Government of India writes to States/UTs
In the recent days, some States and UTs have reported an increasing number of patients suffering from Mucormycosis, popularly known as Black Fungus. Taking a note of the secondary and opportunistic fungal infections which are getting amplified due to the present surge in COVID cases and Mucormycosis becoming a cause of concern, Union Ministry of Health has advised all States/UTs to review their preparedness for infection prevention and control, as well as hygiene and sanitation in hospitals.
For details: https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1720669
Oxygen Expresses deliver record 1118 MT of Oxygen in a day
Indian Railways is continuing its journey of bringing relief by delivering Liquid Medical Oxygen to various states across the country. So far, Indian Railways has delivered nearly 13319 MT of LMO in more than 814 tankers to various states across the country.
It may be noted that 208 Oxygen Expresses have completed their journey so far and brought relief to various States.
For details:https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1720564
DRDO develops COVID-19 antibody detection kit
Defence Institute of Physiology and Allied Sciences , a laboratory of Defence Research and Development Organisation , has developed an antibody detection-based kit 'DIPCOVAN', the DIPAS-VDx COVID-19 IgG Antibody Microwell ELISA for sero-surveillance. The DIPCOVAN kit can detect both spike as well as nucleocapsid  proteins of SARS-CoV-2 virus with a high sensitivity of 97 per cent and specificity of 99 per cent. The kit has been developed in association with Vanguard Diagnostics Pvt Ltd, a development and manufacturing diagnostics company based at New Delhi.
For details:https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1720604
Update on COVID Relief Aid
Government of India has been receiving international cooperation of COVID-19 relief medical supplies and equipment since 27th April 2021 from different countries/organisations. These are being promptly dispatched/delivered to the States and UTs.
Cumulatively, 15,567 Oxygen Concentrators; 15,801 Oxygen Cylinders; 19 Oxygen Generation Plants; 10,950 ventilators/ BiPAP; ~6.6 L Remdesivir vials delivered/ dispatched through road and air, from 27th April 2021 to 20th May 2021.
Major consignments received on 19/20th May 2021 from Wales , Qatar, Ontario , UAE, Spain, USISPF, Gilead, Eli Lily, Indian Danish Chamber of Commerce .
For details:https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1720603
Countrywide “AYUSH COVID -19 Counselling Helpline” operationalized
The toll-free number is 14443. The helpline is operational pan-India from 6 am to 12 midnight-all seven days of a week.Through the helpline 14443, experts from different streams of Ayush, namely Ayurveda, Homeopathy, Yoga, Naturopathy, Unani & Siddha would be available to address queries of the general masses. These experts would not only be providing counselling and feasible remedies to the patients but would also guide them about the availability of nearby Ayush facilities.
For Details : https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1720519
Ministry of Home Affairs Issues Advisory to States/Union Territories to Review Existing Facilities for Vulnerable Groups Taking into Account Second Wave of Covid-19
The Government has been giving high priority on preventing and combating crimes against vulnerable sections of society, including women, children, senior citizens and Scheduled Castes/ Scheduled Tribes, and as well as for putting in place institutional mechanisms for preventing and countering human trafficking.
Taking into account the impact of the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic particularly on vulnerable groups, the MHA has again reiterated to States/ Union Territories to focus on vulnerable sections, especially children who may have been orphaned due to loss of parents due to COVID-19. The MHA has asked States/Union Territories to undertake an immediate review of existing facilities for vulnerable groups, especially for children who have been orphaned, senior citizens who may require timely assistance and support , and members of the Scheduled Castes/ Scheduled Tribes who may need guidance to access Government support facilities.
For details; https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1720544
DST invites applications from startups and companies for developing new technologies and innovative products to tackle second COVID wave
As a rapid response to support startup-driven solutions for tackling the current challenging, second wave of COVID 2.0 in the country, Indian startups and companies have been invited to apply for developing new technologies and innovative products that can enable our country to fight the crisis.
NIDHI4COVID2.0, a new initiative under which the companies can apply, will fund eligible startups & companies registered in India offering promising solutions in the thrust areas of oxygen innovation, portable solution, relevant medical accessories, diagnostic, informatics, or any other solution that addresses/mitigate various challenges faced by country/society due to the severe impact of COVID-19.
For details: https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1720482
INPUTS FROM PIB FIELD OFFICES
Maharashtra: In Maharashtra, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation on Thursday added one more drive in Vaccination Centre in suburban Kandivali area of Mumbai.
Meanwhile, the state government’s latest guidelines have advised screening of a sizable chunk of hospitalized Covid-19 patients for mucormycosis immediately prior to or after the discharge. This includes patients who have had steroid, oxygen therapy and intensive care unit  stay for more than seven days in hospitals.
Gujarat: The Gujarat government has declared Mucormycosis disease as epidemic. The Mucormycosis disease also known as Black Fungus has been declared an epidemic under the Epidemic Disease Act 1857.Gujarat recorded 4,773 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday. According to the State Health Department, 8,308 patients recovered during the last 24 hours and were discharged from the hospitals. Total 6, 77, 798 patients have recovered from COVID-19 in Gujarat till now. The recovery rate further improved and reached up to 87.32 per cent.
Rajasthan:The weekly positive rate in Rajasthan has dipped after rising continuously for 11 weeks. The positivity rate, which was 23% on May 7-13, has now gone down to below 19%. Rajasthan recorded 127 Covid-19 deaths and 7,680 cases on Thursday, taking the overall numbers to 7,346 fatalities and 8,97,193 infections. Of the fresh positive cases, the maximum of 1,517 were reported from Jaipur, while 601 and 427 people tested positive in Jodhpur and Kota respectively. A total of 7,45,873 people have so far recovered from the infection and the number of active cases at present is 1,43,974.
Madhya Pradesh: In Madhya Pradesh, the State Government will provide financial assistance of Rs. 1 lakh to the families of those who died due to COVID-19 during the second wave. Meanwhile, COVID positivity rate declined to 6.3 per cent. The state ranks 16th in the country in terms of infection.The active cases in the state stand at 72,725.More than 70 thousands tests are being conducted every day.
Chhattisgarh: In Chhattisgarh, now it will not be mandatory for air passengers coming from other states to show negative report of RT-PCR test at the time of boarding. Post-Covid OPD services will be started in all District Hospitals of the state. State Health Department of Chhattisgarh has asked the Collectors of all the districts to ensure availability of experts of medicine, eye and physiotherapists in these OPDs. District Hospitals have also been instructed to conduct OPD three days a week for counseling and treatment related to mental health problems such as depression, restlessness, sleep deprivation.
Goa: Goa government today extended the state-wide curfew effective in the state till May 31. The state government had imposed a 15-day state wide curfew from May 10 to May 23 in view of spiralling COVID cases and COVID linked deaths in the state. All essential commodity stores will be open from 7 am to 1 pm during the curfew period. Goa government today formed a task force to prepare for the anticipated third wave of Covid in the state. The 15-member task force under the chairmanship of Chief Minister will have 15 members including doctors.
Assam:A total of 6,573 persons tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday while death count stood at 74. Of the 6,573 positive cases, 1084 were from Kamrup Metro.
Urging the people to strictly follow COVID-19 protocol and restrictions imposed by the government, CM Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday said that the situation would be under control by the next 15-20 days.
Manipur:Manipur on Thursday recorded 644 new COVID-19 positive cases and claimed 11 more lives in Manipur in the last 24 hours.
The total number of people who have been inoculated reached 3,31,631.
CM opened COVID-19 Grievance Cell; scheme started to take care of children orphaned by Covid.The State Government has asked individuals and organisations, which wish to donate medical oxygen cylinders and concentrators to do so through the Government or healthcare institute concerned.
Meghalaya:For the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic struck Meghalaya on April 13, 2020, the state has registered over 1,000 cases in a single day.
10 more people succumbed to COVID-19 taking the total number of fatalities from the infection to 389. There were 465 recoveries which takes the total number of recoveries to 20,061. The Health department has attributed the rise in the number of cases to the increase in the number of tests in the state.
Sikkim:1860 Covishield jabs administered; 30 of44 vaccination sites receive no visitors. 249 new cases and three more Covid deaths in Sikkim.
Tripura: A record number of samples were tested and of which 720 people tested positive with 2 death and 379 recovery. The positivity rate slightly dipped to 6.73%. But west Tripura still tops the chart among rest of the districts with 405 new cases coming in last 24 hours. Total sample tested is 10,699.
Nagaland: Nagaland reports 326 new Covid cases and 11 deaths on Thursday. Active cases are 4519 and tally rises to 19,284. Dimapur oxygen generation plant being set up under PM Cares Fund yet to get certification. Equipments for oxygen plants to be set up at Tuensang and Phek under UNDP support arrived on Thursday.
Kerala:The state government has granted more lockdown relaxations. However, these relaxations are not applicable to areas under triple lockdown. Accordingly, Textile and jewellery showrooms can open with limited number of employees for home delivery and online sale. Wedding groups can visit showrooms for up to one hour. Tax consultants, GST practitioners can work on 2 days a week. Free food kits can be distributed to fisher folk families using the state disaster relief fund. Meanwhile, the state confirmed 30,491 Covid-19 cases yesterday. As of now, there are 3,17,850 active cases in the state. The death toll has risen to 685 with 128 more fatalities. TPR stands at 23.18%. A total of 86,09,008 people has so far taken vaccination. Out of this, 65,88,870 were administered with first dose and 20,20,138 second dose.
Tamil Nadu:With the State government sounding an alert on surging mucormycosis or black fungus cases, the authorities have ordered 5,000 vials of Amphotericin from a private pharmaceutical company in Hosur. The State received its twelfth oxygen express carrying 64.95 MT on Thursday; with this the State has received a total of 649.4 MT of liquid medical oxygen  through 12 oxygen express trains. Pointing out that the Central government affidavit states nothing on drugs, vaccination and oxygen supply to Tamil Nadu now or in the near future, the Madras High Court on Thursday sought the Union government to come up with a ‘centralised plan of action’ to deal with the emergency caused by the raging second wave in the State. TN government on Thursday slashed the Covid test charge at the private laboratories in the state from Rs 1,200 to Rs 900. TN hit an all-time high of Covid-19 cases and deaths on Thursday, reporting 35,579 infections and 397 fatalities.
Karnataka:As per the State Government bulletin released for 20-05-2021, New Cases Reported: 28869; Total Active Cases: 534954; New Covid Deaths: 548; Total Covid Deaths: 23854. Around 63,140 were vaccinated yesterday with a total of 1,15,08,005 have been vaccinated in the state till now. Ending days of speculation on vaccination for the 18 to 44-year age group, the state government on Thursday announced that it will commence vaccination from Saturday , across Karnataka. One-third of all Covid-19 deaths in Karnataka - since the first case in March last year - were reported in the first 20 days of May.
Andhra Pradesh:State reported 22,610 new Covid-19 cases after testing 1,01,281 samples with 114 deaths, while 23,098 got discharged during the last 24 hours. Total cases: 15,21,142; Active cases: 2,09,134; Discharges: 13,02,208; Deaths: 9800. A total of 78,57,020 doses of Covid vaccine have been administered in the state as on yesterday, which include 55,39,622 first doses and 23,17,398 second doses. For treating black fungus, the government has identified 17 hospitals in the State. The State government allocated Rs 1000 crore exclusively to fight Covid-19 pandemic in the newly presented State budget for FY: 2021-22 in the Assembly yesterday. A total of Rs 13,840.44 crore has been earmarked for the health sector. Meanwhile, with the spurt in suspected black fungus cases, the government has notified mucormycosis under the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897.
Telangana:As per the instructions of the Central Government, the State Government has declared the Mucormycosis/Black Fungus as notifiable disease under Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897 and State Public Health Director asks all Govt and private hospitals in the state to report the details of the cases to the Govt in a prescribed format. Ninth Oxygen Express with six tankers carrying 119.40 Metric Tonnes of Liquid Medical Oxygen arrived in Hyderabad from Odisha yesterday. As many as 3,660 new Covid infections and 23 fatalities were reported in the state taking the cumulative number of deaths to 3,060 and the total number of positive cases to 5,44,263. The number of Active Cases in the state now stands at 45,757. Yesterday also the Covid vaccination drive could not take place in the state due to shortage of vaccines.
Punjab: The total number of patients tested Positive is 523423. Number of active cases is 67041. Total Deaths reported is 12716. Total COVID-19 Vaccinated with 1st dose  is 840628. Total COVID-19 Vaccinated with 2nd dose  is 242068. Total above 45 Vaccinated with 1st dose is 2644958. Total above 45 Vaccinated with 2nd dose is 439746.
Haryana: Total Number of Samples found positive till date is 722964. Total active COVID-19 patients are 62352. Number of deaths is 7205. Cumulative number of people vaccinated till date is 5129363.
Chandigarh: Total Lab confirmed COVID-19 cases are 57331. Total number of Active Cases is 6073. Total number of COVID-19 deaths till date is 666.
Himachal Pradesh: Total number of patients tested COVID positive till date is 172722. Total number of Active Cases is 33448. Total deaths reported till date is 2581.
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